Various embodiments described herein relate to microelectronic manufacturing methods that use photomasks and, more particularly, to systems, methods and computer program products for forming photomasks, and photomasks so formed.
Photomasks are widely used in microelectronic device fabrication, for example as part of a photolithography process. As the integration density of microelectronic devices continues to increase, the pattern density of photomask patterns also continues to increase. Photomasks generally are designed by designing a pattern layout and performing optical proximity correction (OPC) to modify the designed pattern to reduce optical diffraction and optical interference effects. A design verification process may also be performed to identify potential defects, such as pattern necking and/or bridging, and the patterns of the photomasks also may be modified to reduce the likelihood of such defects. Once the patterns are modified, the modified patterns are used to form a photomask and the photomask is used to manufacture microelectronic devices.